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Wintersday 2006
]] Wintersday 2006 is the 2006 version of the Wintersday festival, i.e. the annual competition of Dwayna (fighting for a mild winter and early spring) vs. Grenth (fighting for a long and cold winter). As announced on the official Guild Wars website, Wintersday 2006 will see a revival of many activities and items known from last year's event, as well as a few new features. Most of the events are restricted to the Prophecies and Nightfall campaigns, however players with only Guild Wars Factions can access the Dwayna Vs Grenth snowball arena, and the Candysmiths from the Great Temple of Balthazar on the Battle Isles. NOTE: Candy Cane Shards do drop in Factions Explorable areas. Schedule The event lasts for 13 days, over the Christmas holiday season 2006/2007: :Start: Wednesday, December 20, 2006 (4:25 pm PST) :Finale: Monday, January 1st, 2007 ::In Lion's Arch the finale starts every 3 hours starting at 12:01 AM PST, 08:00 AM GMT ::In Kamadan the finale starts every 3 hours starting at 12:15~12:16 AM PST, 08:15 AM GMT :'''End: Monday, January 1st, 2007 (11:59 pm PST) ("Grand Finale" event throughout the day on Monday) :Post-event: On Monday, January 2nd, 2007 after the last finale Wintersday Gift Givers appeared in Ascalon City, Lion's Arch, Droknar's Forge and Kamadan. ALL TIMES ARE APPROXIMATE Well it's finally over, at least the Finale is. Will Dwayna bring an early thaw or will Grenth plunge the world into an everlasting winter? (At least until the sun melts the snow). Obtaining the festival hats Players have once again created their own system of determining which hat they would like to receive. General consensus among players is that even number districts should support Dwayna and odd number districts should support Grenth. It is possible to obtain more than one hat in a single event cycle. Since the Kamadan event occurs 15 minutes later than the Lion's Arch event, a player can obtain one hat in Lion's Arch them immediately jump to Kamadan to obtain a second. Additionally, a player in a low-numbered district in either city could obtain their hat, them move to a higher district of that same city to obtain the other. In this manner, it is possible to obtain all four hats in a single event cycle (although not easy -- you have to be quick). Note: It IS possible to obtain the hat without having the supply of Candy Cane Shards. Locations The following towns (except for the Great Temple of Balthazar) will be re-decorated in a winter theme, serving as the stage for most of the Winterfest activities: Activities Quests During the festivities, special quests will be offered: *Two quests from Wintersday 2005: **The Greatest Snowman Ever Made (support Dwayna) **A Very Grentchie Wintersday (support Grenth) *Two "all new quest chains revolving around the two competing holiday gods". Featuring "polar bears, reindeer, and devious presents": **The quest Save the Reindeer can be acquired from Grandfather Kringle in Kamadan. The quests following this quest are Find the Stolen Presents and Spreading the Wintersday Spirit. **The quest White Mist can be acquired from Elder Skruuj in Kamadan. The quests following this quest are How The Grentches Stole Wintersday and The Gift of Giving. See also: Category:Wintersday 2006 quests Note: these quests are grouped in the Festival Event Quests section of the Quest Log. Snowball Fights This year's event will feature the PvP version of the snowball fights known from last year's event, as well as an all new PvE version: *PvP: "Random forces will unite within an arena to fight for either Grenth or Dwayna. The first team to gather five presents for its patron deity will win the day." For details, see: Dwayna Vs Grenth (Arena) and snow fighting skills. This started December 20. *PvE: "Venture into the Underworld for a series of repeatable snowball fights against either the forces of Grenth or the forces of Dwayna. Take control of piles of presents to ensure your side’s victory in this frosty fray." For details, see: You're a Mean One, Mr. Grenth and In Grenth's Defense. This started December 23. These are solo missions. Also, deaths during these missions do count against you, so Survivors might want to avoid them. However, anyone, regardless of level, may participate in these as your maximum health, energy and skills are reset. Present Hunt This is the repeat of last year's present hunt. Periodically a present spawns at the locations listed below. Players must spot the present, pick it up quickly and deliver it to one of the Young Children in town before any of the Grentches reach the present and destroy it. Grentches can also destroy presents held by players if they come within adjacent range. In return, the child will hand the player a Candy Cane Shard or a Winter Gift which will unwrap into a random Wintersday item. Grentches move faster than players, however Sugar Rush can be used to outrun them. When a present spawns the Grentches will run all the way to the spawn point before chasing someone who has picked it up. It appears that a new present spawns whenever a present is turned in or destroyed. Grentches may be temporarily trapped at the Lion's Arch lighthouse. Getting the Grentches to follow a present carrier to the lighthouse will cause the Grentches to become stuck at this location (after they destroy the carried present). Present drops will proceed as usual, and everyone will have a chance to take their presents to Scrappy Jhim. Known present spawn points: *Ascalon City **Center by the crafters. **South by traders. **Southeast by the Carolers of Grenth. **Southeast by Warmaster Tydus. **On the hill by the Xunlai Agents. *Lion's Arch **To the southwest near Scrappy Jhim. **To the west near Vehemus. **In the northwest in front of the Wintersday Priest. **Up on the hill to the northwest between Magi Malaquire and Magi Nor. **Northeast between Merkin and Liran. **Southeast near Jak Lundunn and the tree in the Storage area. **To the south next to the southwestern Crafter's Corner sign. **To the south next to Jiaju Tai. **Up the hill to the southwest by the Carolers of Dwayna and the lion statue. **Next to The Guild Registrar between him and the big door. **Infront of the door to North Kryta Province. *Droknar's Forge **Southwest by the statue of Glint. **West by Vanyi and the Xunlai Agents. *Kamadan **Northeast by the Consulate **Center between storage and the snowmen. **Center near the Winter Dwarf. **Southeast by Dockmaster Ahlaro. **South by Nenah. **Southwest near the crafters. **West near the carollers, avatars and Wintersday Priest. **Northwest by the traders. Children who give Candy Cane Shards *Ascalon City: Jayne, Katie, Young Child *Droknar's Forge: Young Child *Kamadan: Niwah, Young Child *Lion's Arch: Lara Children who give Winter Gifts *Lion's Arch: Scrappy Jhim (so far Jhim is the ONLY child that will give a Winter Gift, which is odd, but 2 presents spawn VERY close to him making it easy to score Winter Gifts quickly- it is believed this is due to the fact Jhim was involved in the 2005 Wintersday Festival and gave out Winter Gifts then -> no longer true !) *Northwest by the traders. Children who will not take presents *Kamadan: Mahk's Son 2006 festival finale On January 1st, 2007 in Lion's Arch and Kamadan, the Avatars of Grenth and Dwayna appear for their annual challenge. To vote for your god, find the rings that look like the setup from Nine Rings in town. Stand in blue (Kamadan) or green (Lion's Arch) rings for Dwayna or red rings for Grenth with a Candy Cane Shard as the wager. There are 3 rounds with 5 matches each. Once the match begins, every few seconds, a ring will randomly be chosen from each side. Players standing in the the chosen ring have their count added towards the god and are rewarded with a Wintersday Gift and 1-5 candy cane shards depending on which ring they stood in. These wagers do count towards the Lucky and Unlucky Titles. After the match ends, the god with the highest total is considered the winner, and all players in the district are given a festival hat. In Lion's Arch, Dwayna supporters win Stylish Yule Caps while Grenth supporters win Great Horns of Grenth. In Kamadan, Dwayna awards Freezie Crowns while Grenth awards Jester's Caps. After the event, fireworks start (with different styles depending on who wins) and Wintersday Gifts drop. Each gift is assigned to only one player, but the standard item assignment timer does apply, so it is eventually possible to take presents assigned to players who are AFK or who leave the district. The gifts spawn near the player which they are assigned to. All players receive the same amount of gifts. If Grenth wins, Grentches will start killing players and lethal ice bombardment will start, concentrated around the two sets of rings, the Avatar of Dwayna will resurrect any fallen players. These deaths do not count against the Survivor title. The event occurs every three hours following the first event (12:00 AM PST, 08:00 AM GMT in Lion's Arch; 12:15 AM PST, 08:15 AM GMT in Kamadan). For example in Western Europe 8:00 AM GMT corresponds with 09:00 AM. There will be 9 events throughout the course of the day ending at midnight PST 01 January 2007. The event will first start in district 1 (or the first few districts) first. It will then after a few seconds start in the next district(s). Because of this, it is possible to go to a very low number district first and receive a hat there and then quickly move on to a very high number district and get another hat there. Festival Hats are given out roughly 8 minutes after the event starts, and presents drop for roughly 10 or 15 minutes after the hat giveaway. Festival Hats are passed out to players. The hat that is dropped in a players inventory will be based on the winning God (Grenth or Dwayna) in the ring pad game. If the majority of players in the ring pad game are on the Dwayna game pads in a Kamadan district all players in that district will receive a Freezie Crown. This includes players that were on the Grenth pads. Be sure to watch which side (Grenth's side or Dwayna's side the players in your district are stacked on. Hat distribution -''' '''Kamadan Dwayna winning district - Freezie Crown Grenth winning district - Jester's Cap Lions Arch Dwayna winning district - Stylish Yule Cap Grenth winning district - Great Horns of Grenth Throughout the event, people are encouraged to go to an even district for Dwayna to win, or an odd district for Grenth to win. This way everyone could get the hat of their choice. However, this will not always work since not everyone is aware of this practice. To help everyone get the hat of their choice, it is recommended that players spread the word to others in their district, and direct them to this site. The ring game The ring game costs 1 Candy Cane shard per round. No matter where you stand, you will receive a Wintersday Gift 1 time out of 9. Having 4 adjacent circles makes the center circle the best position for winning Candy Cane Shards. Since it has best winning payout and same odds as other circles, center circle is the best position for both lucky and unlucky titles (See Nine Rings). Even though the event is done, the Wintersday Presents are still there, and many people will be idle. Try challenging yourself by getting the unassigned ones. Wintergreen Challenge This event is hosted by the Xunlai guild. It revolves around the Wintergreen Tournament. Contestants win Wintergreen weapons for correctly predicting the outcome of tournament games and may claim their reward from a Xunlai Tournament Agent. Note: At the moment this NPC is unavailable (Gaile has indicated the Wintergreen Weapons should be available by mid-January). See also: Category:Wintergreen weapons NPCs Kimberly, Guardsman Ash, Guardsman Brooke and Mac Snowhammer These NPCs throw non-damaging snowballs at players and NPCs in towns. Kimberly is in Lion's Arch, the Guardsmen are in Ascalon City, and Mac Snowhammer is in Droknar's Forge. Collectors A number of collectors have shown up in the above listed event towns, handing out special reward items in return for special collectible items. The selection differs, depending on whether the collector supports Dwayna or Grenth. For a listing, see: Wintersday 2006 collectors Candysmiths The following Candysmiths have shown up: *Candysmith Noel in Ascalon City *Candysmith Kris in Lion's Arch *Candysmith Sweetshanks in Droknar's Forge *Candysmith Coldstone in Kamadan *Candysmith Kringle in Dwayna Vs Grenth (Location) *Candysmith Marley in Dwayna Vs Grenth (Location) All of them except for Candysmith Marley offer all six of the candy cane weapons and all 3 of the new peppermint weapons for 9 Candy Cane Shards each. Marley offers the Gingerbread Focus, Gingerbread Shield and Peppermint Shield for 12 Candy Cane Shards each. Wintersday Gift Givers Wintersday Gift Givers were added to Ascalon City, Lion's Arch, Droknar's Forge and Kamadan on January 2nd after the last finale. They trade 1 Wintersday Gift for 5 Candy Cane Shards. Festival Hat Maker New festival hat makers appeared in Kamadan and Lion's Arch. They are able to "copy" festival hats among the characters of an account for 10 gold. This service is meant to reduce the amount of storage and inventory space occupied by festival hats. For more information, see: festival hat maker Although they were introduced with the Wintersday update, the festival hat makers are a permanent addition. NOTE: Hats customized for characters other than the one you are using cannot be copied. You must have obtained the hat yourself to get the hat duplicated. This means that the hat has to be from one of your characters. If you have got it traded from another player, the Festival Hat maker will come up with the message "I cannot make this hat if it is not customized for you!", or something similar. Carolers In both Lion's Arch and Kamadan, there are sets of carolers for Dwayna and Grenth. They rotate through dialog that sings alternate versions of commonly known Christmas carols. The Carolers of Dwayna sing five carols. The Carolers of Grenth sing four carols. Winter Dwarf In Kamadan, there is a level 10 Dwarf, held by a Dwarf Guard. Talking to the Winter Dwarf will present three dialog options. The Winter Dwarf, pleading to the player (and Grenth) for merciful death, dies when a player selects the third response. His death is short-lived, as the guard quickly notices and revives him, wondering how he died in the first place. He doesn't seem to have any special purpose other than amusement value. Enchanted Snowman In various cities there are Enchanted Snowman henchmen that can be added to your party. These snowmen are Elementalists specializing in Water Magic. The Frog The Frog is located in Lion's Arch and Kamadan. He can be seen wearing a Yule Cap. Items The following are the available items for Wintersday 2006, with a brief description from the official Guild wars website: *Winter Gift - What surprise will you find inside? "Unwrap" it to find out. *Snowman Summoner - Need an instant snowman? This gift is for you. *Eggnog - The holiday season's staple drink. *Spiked Eggnog - A more potent glass of Eggnog for the hale and hearty. Please imbibe responsibly—don't drink and quest. *Wintergreen Candy Cane - The return of the adventurer's favorite candy treat. (Remove 15% Death Penalty in PvE only) *Rainbow Candy Cane - A different flavor of candy cane that should also make those long days of questing much more enjoyable. Give party 5% morale boost but the morale boost does not cause skills to recharge (Not valid in PvP) *Yuletide Tonic - Drink this tonic if you want to be one of Dwayna's little helpers during the festivities. *Glob of Frozen Ectoplasm - You'll need this collectible item when you get low on Yuletide Tonic. *Candy Cane Shard - "Collect these colorful fragments by queusting and competing. The outcome of Wintersday hangs in the balance, and your contribution of Candy Cane Shards may make all the difference. Besides, you never know what somebody might trade for these once the festivities come to a close. Tip: Hold onto those shards until the Wintersday finale and use them for good (or mischievous) intent!" **They are obtained in the following ways: ***Successful Completion of Wintersday Quests ***Victory in the Dwayna vs Grenth Snowball PvP Event ***Opening Winter Gifts ***Random Loot Drops **They have the following uses: ***They can be exchanged for weapons (9 shards) and offhand items (12 shards) from candysmiths. ***They are used during the ring game. ***5 can be exchanged for 1 Wintersday Gift at the Wintersday Gift Givers. *Fruitcake - A tasty holiday staple that is sure to put a little spring in your step. (causes Sugar Rush) *Special Rewards: In the tradition of the season, you'll receive special headgear during the Wintersday finale. And even better, you'll get a new means of storing it, as well. **Dwayna's Festival Hats are the Stylish Yule Cap (Lion's Arch) and the Freezie Crown (Kamadan). **Grenth's Festival Hats are the Great Horns of Grenth (Lion's Arch) and the Jester's Cap (Kamadan). *The following items are not mentioned on the website, but are available: **Candy weapons - not mentioned on the official website, all 6 of the 2005 Candy Cane weapons have returned, as have the Gingerbread Shield and Focus and the Peppermint Shield, furthermore, 3 new peppermint weapons have been added (daggers, spear, scythe). **Peppermint Candy Canes - During Wintersday 2006 they can be obtained from Winter Gifts and Wintersday Gifts **Wintersday Gifts - Obtained during the finale See also: Category:Wintersday 2006 items Wintersday Gaile Wintersday Gaile and Bearded Man (Guild Wars Employees) showed up on January 1st for the 8:00 AM PST event in Kamadan. They participated in the event and scrambled for presents with the rest of the players. Both Wintersday Gaile and Bearded Man were not immortal as they both were found dead after the killing touch of Grentch and falling snow men (Avalanche) killing them. After present gathering Wintersday Gaile organized her famous "Congo Line" and ran everyone through Kamadan. Wintersday Gaile and Bearded Man also organized many screen shots in different variations from mass rank emotes coupled with cheering to dancing circled around the centre decorated tree. At one point players witnessed Bearded Man gathering the un-reachable presents in Dwayna's grandstand area. Wintersday Gaile and Bearded Man indicated they were gathering footage and images of the event for an up-coming video that will be posted to the Guild Wars web site. External Links *http://www.guildwars.com/events/ingame/wintersday2k6/default.php - Wintersday 2006 Event: Annual Battle between Grenth and Dwayna *http://www.guildwars.com/community/thescribe/scribe-061130.php - The Scribe tells about "Wintergreen Challenge" *http://www.guildwars.com/competitive/funseason/winterfest2006.php - Winterfest 2006 Ladder Season *http://www.guildwars.com/gallery/screenshots/winterfest2006/ - Wintersday 2006 screenshots, including screenshots of Wintergreen items *http://www.guildwars.com/events/contests/wintersday2006/ - Official Wintersday art contest. *http://www.guildwars.com/press/releases/pressrelease-2006-12-13.php - "Wintersday 2006 will take place in-game December 20, 2006 through January 1, 2007." Category:Wintersday 2006 Category:Special events